On September 28, Washington, D.C. will get a brand new library, located in Ward 5’s Woodridge neighborhood. Located at 1801 Hanlin Street NE, the new Woodridge Library will span 20,000 square feet with 40 computers, two conference rooms for up to 14 people, and a total of 40,000 books, CDs, DVDs, and other library materials. The facility replaces a building that dated to 1958 and was razed in 2014.
Bing Thom Architects, the same firm behind the Surrey City Centre Library, designed Washington, D.C.’s new library with geometric shapes and curves throughout. This is Bing Thom’s first library ever built in the city. It cost $16.5 million to construct, according to The Washington Post.
The three-level facility comes with a reading nook for children as well as a pre-teen section on the ground level and a Mac station on the second level. The LEED Gold-certified structure is the first library in the District to have a roof terrace. Other unorthodox highlights include arena seating and a terrace on the first floor.
When viewing the library on Rhode Island Avenue NE, the geometric structure has been described as looking like a detention center due to it appearing to have few to no windows. In reality, the library is sun-filled with floor-to-ceiling windows that offer views of the adjacent Langdon Park.
[UPDATE 10/21: Bing Thom Architects was the design architect and Wiencek + Associates Architects + Planners was the community liaison and architect of record for the project.]